powrót do Aktualności
As a result of an IJHARS inspection carried out in 2019, the method of affixing the label to the packaging of a food product was challenged. The inspection authority considered that a label attached to a jar with an elastic band was not indelible; therefore, the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 were deemed to have been infringed, and a financial penalty was imposed on the company for placing on the market a batch of products of inadequate commercial quality.
The company disagreed with the inspection authority’s interpretation of Article 13(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 and appealed the decision. In the further course of the proceedings, the case was brought before the Regional Administrative Court (WSA), which accepted the company’s arguments and annulled the contested decision.
INTRODUCTION
Under Article 13(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, mandatory food information must be marked in a conspicuous place in such a way as to be easily visible, clearly legible and, where appropriate, indelible. It must not in any way be hidden, obscured, detracted from or interrupted by any other written or pictorial matter or any other intervening material.
The inspection authority’s error in interpretation consisted in assuming that the concept of a “label” overlaps with the concepts of “food information” and “labelling”, whereas the concept of a “label” relates to the physical medium carrying product information, and the concepts of “food information” and “labelling” relate to the information itself and the act of providing it. In addition, the inspection authority incorrectly assumed that food information must be available to the consumer throughout the entire shelf-life of the product.
It should be emphasised that during the inspections conducted, no label was missing, no damage to the label was found, and no legally required food information was absent.
In the Court’s view, since the inspection authority did not challenge the legibility and clarity of the labels, the allegation that they lacked the legally required attribute of indelibility, and the imposition of a financial penalty on that basis, constituted an overly expansive interpretation of the law.
The Court agreed with the company’s arguments, holding that indelibility—where appropriate—concerns the information, not the place or medium on which it is displayed. Therefore, the inspection authority’s extended interpretation must be regarded as inadmissible.
IMPLICATIONS FOR COMPANIES
The judgment is of particular relevance to companies placing foods (including supplements) on the market where the label is affixed to the packaging in a non-standard manner, e.g., with a string, ribbon, band, or elastic ring.
The WSA judgment confirms the interpretation of selected provisions of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 under which the requirement of indelibility relates to food information, and extending it to the label as such constitutes an overly broad interpretation of the law.
We are very pleased that, as the team of food law experts at IGI FOOD LAW, we were able to support the company from the outset of the proceedings by preparing the substantive arguments in the case, which were ultimately accepted by the Court.
We would like to thank the company for the trust placed in us, for entrusting us with the matter, and for our long-standing cooperation to date.
If you have any questions regarding food labelling and advertising, including food supplements, or if you are currently in a dispute with IJHARS or the State Sanitary Inspection (PIS), please contact us at igifoodlaw@igifoodlaw.com.
[1] REGULATION (EU) No 1169/2011 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 25 October 2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, amending Regulations (EC) No 1924/2006 and (EC) No 1925/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Commission Directive 87/250/EEC, Council Directive 90/496/EEC, Commission Directive 1999/10/EC, Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, Commission Directives 2002/67/EC and 2008/5/EC and Commission Regulation (EC) No 608/2004.
